


The Same Story Told In Five Universes

by bessemerprocess



Category: Anderson Cooper 360 RPF, Countdown RPF, Fake News RPF, Pundit & Broadcast Journalist RPF (US), Real News RPF, The Colbert Report RPF, The Daily Show RPF, The Rachel Maddow Show RPF
Genre: 5 Things, Alternate Universe, FNFF SeSa 2009, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-01-16
Updated: 2010-01-16
Packaged: 2017-10-06 08:50:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/51840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bessemerprocess/pseuds/bessemerprocess
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five universes where the PRT stick up for each other.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Same Story Told In Five Universes

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sarken](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sarken/gifts).



1\. Baristas

Rachel hates this job so very much. The customers are always in a hurry and their orders are longer than their drinks are tall. Plus, no one has respect for the artistry that is the perfect cup of coffee.

Their morning ritual goes like this. Jon lets her in at 4 am and they prep the store. They bustle about each other in companionable silence, letting the smell of roasting coffee fill the building and getting ready for the day ahead. Cups are stacked where corporate says they should be stacked, sugar packets fill the sugar packet bin just so. Then, ten minutes before they have to open the doors to the ravaging hordes, Rachel makes Jon a cup of coffee. It's the same motion every day, but his smile of appreciation after that first sip girds her against the coming onslaught.

There is this guy that comes in every weekday at 6:15 on the dot. Suit, power tie, well shined shoes and a ten dollar bill. His order is always the same: tall americano. It's an easy enough drink, but without fail he finds something wrong with it. The water is too warm or not warm enough, the lid isn't on tight enough, the espresso wasn't brewed just the way he liked it. It didn't matter that Rachel made it exactly the same way every single time, this guy just wants to complain.

He must be having a really bad day, because he gets up in Rachel's face, yelling that there is too much water this time. He reaches for her, and suddenly Jon is between them. He's calm, she's never seen him not be.

"Sir," he says, his voice low and soft, "you need to leave immediately."

The man looks at Jon, looks down at his drink, and nods. "Yeah, yeah, sorry," he says, and walks out the door.

"Thanks," Rachel says, but Jon just shrugs it off.

"No big."

 

2\. Protesters

Anderson grabs her hand and pulls her after him as the tear gas breaks over the crowd. The protest had been peaceful: shouting, marching, waving signs--that sort of thing. Then the local anarchists had crashed the party, and suddenly there was riot gear pushing them back and tear gas blanketing the area. She's pretty sure the cops have just been waiting for this moment.

Tears are streaming from Rachel's eyes, and she holds on to Anderson as hard as she can as they run.

"Come on," Anderson screams above the noise of a thousand other screaming people. "In here!"

They duck down an alley. This is one of Anderson's quirky skills: he navigates like a native, no matter where they are.

She met him in college, back when they were both disaffected and coming to terms with their sexuality. The first protest had been about AIDS treatment funding, but since then they've been in almost every major city in the world protesting things ranging from the destruction of the environment to free trade to gay rights.

They're both famous now, or perhaps infamous. The rich boy from New York and the smart girl from California and their crusade to make the world a better place. They've been on half of cable news' television programs, trying to talk rationally over all the yelling pundits and their pictures have been on those same programs even more often when they have once again been arrested.

The alley is fenced off, but they're both adept at fence jumping at this point and they make it over with ease only to come face to face with cops.

"Protesters," the first one says with a sneer.

"We were just trying to get out of the tear gas cloud," Rachel says. She stands still and keeps her hands away from her body. No point in spooking anybody, she'd learned long ago.

"Well then, miss," the cops says, "you won't mind coming with us then. You being law abiding citizens and all." The other cop thinks this is hilarious. Both cops move in closer, trapping them up against the fence, and Rachel can feel Anderson go tense next to her. It's obvious the cops are more interested in her than him, which is odd, because it's Anderson's face people usually recognize. They probably have half a description from some other cop about some other person who's done something Rachel has no way of knowing about, but is about to be blamed for.

"Look, officer," Anderson says using his best calm voice, "we just want to go home and clean up." She's seen him talk men with guns down with that voice, but it's not working on the cops.

"You're free to go. Her, we're taking her with us." The cop turns to Rachel and says, "You are under arrest."

She's heard her Miranda rights a million and one times, so she tunes it out, focusing instead on Anderson as the cop cuffs her.

"For what?" Anderson asks, even though she knows he knows better.

"You, too," the cops says, and suddenly Anderson is next to her, face against the fence, being hand cuffed.

"Thanks for trying," she says to him.

"Any time," he replies with a smile.

 

3\. Comedians

She's the straight man in this relationship. Which is funny in and of itself now that she thinks about it. Stephen is an actual straight man, which is frankly mind boggling at times, but it's true. He is, however, the crazy one in their act, bouncing around with his endless energy while she gives him that look that says, "Seriously?" It makes audiences laugh every time.

Tonight is no exception. Well, beside the guy that is drunk in the first row, and even worse, he's loud. He started in with the booing and has moved on to insulting her parentage, her sexuality, and her fashion sense. Which, really, is pretty normal as far as insults go. She's not particularly bothered by it until a beer bottle comes flying at the stage.

Stephen's humor isn't normally mean. It can be. She's seen him cut down politicians and investment bankers and people who jay walk, but usually that's tempered by the stage. The bottle must have been the last straw, because Stephen lets this guy have it. He works the crowd, calling the guy out, turning the audience against him, until finally the guy mumbles something before the crowd comes after him.

"What was that?" Stephen says.

"I'm sorry, alright?" the guy yells back.

"Alright," she yells, and they go back to the act like nothing ever happened.

 

4\. War Corespondents

"I don't really need you to stick up for me, Keith," Rachel says. "I'm a big girl reporter, and besides, these rebels are more scared of me than they are of you, old man."

Keith looks around the outbuilding they've been thrown into. The floor is dirt and he can see sun light through the slats, worse, he can see men with guns. Men with guns who speak a language that he doesn't, and who are still a little pissed off that Rachel kneed their leader during their capture. Rachel seems no worse for the wear, but Keith is nursing bloody knuckles and bruised ribs.

Rachel has always been like that. She drinks the best booze, she smokes the finest cigars, she brings all the hottest women home, and she stands up to rebels leaders and gets them to confess things on camera that Keith can only imagine.

He'd been a war correspondent for ten years before Rachel came on the scene, but he'd never really been shot at before her. She's attracted to danger like it's a shiny, sparkly thing, and she drags him behind in her wake.

Which is exactly how they ended up here. They were only supposed to be asking questions, but with Rachel, well, Keith should have known better. He'd been ready to run when the translator balked at telling Rachel what the rebel leader had said, but Rachel had charged on ahead and gotten him to admit responsibility for the death of the Vice President.

Things had gone down hill from there. The rebel leader had slapped Rachel across the face for pushing the matter. It was something about the shocked look on her face, or the sudden stillness of the camp, Keith still has no idea, but he'd stepped in and punched the man in the face. Which pretty much led directly to their current situation.

He makes a note to the list in his brain as he wonders what's about to come next: Rachel Maddow can stand up for herself, and also, that punching rebel leaders is never a good idea.

 

5\. Bartenders

They're closing up for the night when it happens. The two guys in the back booth have been getting more and more obnoxious as the night goes on and now they're refusing to leave. Keith is trying to deal with them and Jon has joined him at their table. Usually Keith is more than enough to get drunk guys to stand down. He's big, but not threatening unless provoked, and usually a few quiet words from him is all it takes. Tonight though, tonight these guys just keep escalating.

Rachel scans the bar. All the rest of the customers are gone. Stephen is in the back, which is probably for the best. He's a loose canon and his mere presence can make any situation go from normal to crazy in ten seconds. Anderson is busing the few remaining dirty tables with one eye on the job and the other on Keith.

They can both hear Jon's voice go low as he explains that they really don't want to escort the men off the premises, but if they don't leave now that there could be police involvement. Jon always looks small standing next to Keith, but once he starts talking, everyone in the room knows he's not someone to be ignored. These guys, however, seem immune to the warning in his tone.

That's the last straw for her. No one treats her people like this. She catches Anderson's eye and nods towards the phone. She knows he knows what to do and that back up will be here in a minute, so she walks out from behind the bar to join Keith and Jon.

"Hello, gentlemen," she says, and all the men turn to look at her. "I understand we have a problem."

"These douches," the first man says.

"Yeah, these fags," the second one slurs.

"They won't bring us our drinks!"

"Yeah, our drinks," the second one echoes.

Rachel grits her teeth, if she punches someone in the face it'll be a bitch to mix drinks tomorrow. "Sir, we're closed, and besides that, the State of New York has made it illegal for us to serve alcohol at this hour. I'm going to ask that you collect your belongings, leave immediately and never, ever come back. No one speaks to my people like that." She glares and they both shut up. Probably because Anderson has return with both Stephen and Officer Todd, but she hopes some of it is the fury in her voice.

The men look at each other, look back at Rachel, and the first one says, "Fine." It's not polite and it's not an apology, but they allow Todd to escort them out the front door, and that all that Rachel really needs to happen right now.

Once Keith has locked the doors behind them, Rachel sighs. "Drinks?" she asks them.

Stephen nods and Anderson smiles and Keith just heads for the bar.

"Sure," Jon says, "and thanks for the back up."

"No big," she says with a smile, and lets him hug her.


End file.
